The Chief of Defence Staff participated in the Balkan Countries CHODs Conference

The Chief of Defence Staff, General Gheorghițã Vlad, participated in the Balkan Countries CHODs Conference held over June 5-6, in Durres, Albania.

Pursuing the idea of good neighborhood in a world governed by rules, this year's CHODs meeting of the signatory countries of this regional military cooperation initiative focused on enhancing the joint effort to maintain the security climate, developing crisis management mechanisms, as well as on increasing interoperability among the armed forces through joint exercises and training.

The Chief of Defence Staff emphasized that, in the Balkans, NATO and the European Union are the main providers of stability, the operational commitments aiming at ensuring a safe environment, such as the NATO KFOR Mission in Kosovo and the EUFOR ALTHEA Operation in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

During the session on the topic "Involvement of young people in the security and defence issues", General Gheorghițã Vlad stated that "at national level, we are going thorugh a period of generational shift, between those born throughout 1981-1996 and those born after 1997. We need to have a better understanding of the generational differences to identify appropriate ways to motivate young people in order to get more involved in defence and security issues. We are taking into account the trend of population decline and aging, a significant problem throughout the European continent, which adds to other real difficulties occurring in the field of young people’s employment not only in the military, but also in other fields of activity".


As part of the conference, the Chief of Defence Staff had bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Bulgaria, Admiral Emil Eftimov, from Greece, General Dimitrios Choupis, North Macedonia, Lieutenant General Vasko Gjurchinovski, and from Serbia, General Milan Mojsilovic. He also had meetings with the Deputy Commander of the Joint Forces Command Naples, Lieutenant General Stephen Kelsey.


The Balkan Countries CHODs Conference is held annually and brings together the Chiefs of Defence from nine countries in South-Eastern Europe: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Greece, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia and Turkey. Traditionally, this year's meeting was also attended by the Chiefs of Defence from Croatia and Slovenia as invitees. High-ranking representatives from NATO and EU structures were also present. The forum is a complementary tool to other regional initiatives in the field of military cooperation, aimed at maintaining stability in the Balkans’ region.


Romania hosted two edition of thisn forum, the first in 2010, in Poiana Brașov, and the secod in 2019, in Bucharest.

The Press Office